WNYC Hires "The Christie Chronicles" Blogger Matt Katz

WNYC Hires “The Christie Chronicles” Blogger Matt Katz

(New York, NY—October 17, 2013)—WNYC announced today that Matt Katz, a reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer and creator and writer of the blog “The Christie Chronicles,” has been hired as a reporter for New Jersey Public Radio, which extends WNYC’s reach into New Jersey. He will continue to cover Christie and other New Jersey stories, and his work will be heard on both WNYC and NJPR. Katz will begin on Tuesday, November 12. The hire is part of a collaboration with New Jersey Spotlight, which will host a blog by Katz.

Katz is a winner of the Livingston Award, a prestigious honor given to the best journalists under 35, which he won for his reporting from Afghanistan for the Inquirer in 2010. He also produced award-winning investigative coverage of Camden for the Inquirer. In 2012, he won first place for political reporting from the Philadelphia chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.

Katz has been recognized by the New Jersey Press Association for several breaking news stories including the arrests of alleged terrorists seeing to attack Fort Dix, and in 2001 was awarded the Robert M. Kelly Award from the NJPA for being the most accomplished reporter in the state after one year in the profession.

Prior to his role at the Inquirer, where he has been since 2008, Katz covered New Jersey for the Morris County Daily Record from 2000 to 2002 and the Camden Courier Post from 2002 to 2008. Katz has also freelanced for The New Republic on New Jersey politics.

"Chris Christie is one of the most compelling political figures in the nation, and it’s a sign of the maturation of New Jersey Public Radio that we can now devote a reporter to covering him,” said Jim Schachter, Vice President for News at WNYC. “Matt Katz has shown himself to be a tough, enterprising reporter on assignments that have taken him from Camden to Afghanistan. And he's covered Governor Christie like nobody else. We’re delighted to welcome him to the WNYC/NJPR team."

"I'm an enormous fan of public radio, and so having a chance to stay on the Christie beat via a new medium was an enticing opportunity,” said Katz. “I'm excited to join one of the most prestigious news organizations in the world, while continuing to cover one of the country's most animated and intriguing politicians."

New Jersey Public Radio is supported, in part, by the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the New Jersey Recovery Fund, and the Wyncote Foundation.

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New York Public Radio is New York’s premier public radio franchise, comprising WNYC, WQXR, The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space, and New Jersey Public Radio, as well as www.wnyc.org, www.wqxr.org, www.thegreenespace.org and www.njpublicradio.org. As America's most listened-to AM/FM news and talk public radio stations, reaching 1.1 million listeners every week, WNYC extends New York City's cultural riches to the entire country on-air and online, and presents the best national offerings from networks NPR, Public Radio International, American Public Media, and the British Broadcasting Company. WQXR is New York City's sole 24-hour classical music station, presenting new and landmark classical recordings as well as live concerts from the Metropolitan Opera, the New York Philharmonic, and Carnegie Hall, among other New York City venues, immersing listeners in the city's rich musical life. In addition to its audio content, WNYC and WQXR produce content for live, radio and web audiences from The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space, the station's street-level multipurpose, multiplatform broadcast studio and performance space. New Jersey Public Radio extends WNYC’s reach and service more deeply into New Jersey. For more information about New York Public Radio, visit www.nypublicradio.org.